Former Chelsea and Actual Madrid ahead Eden Hazard will lace up his boots as soon as once more to take part within the Kings World Cup, attributable to be held in Mexico later this 12 months, it was revealed on Monday.
Rio Ferdinand can even participate within the seven-a-side match, which already includes Zlatan Ibrahimović and Neymar, amongst others, though the ex-Manchester United defender’s participation shall be because the co-president of one of many groups alongside content material creator Jeremy Lynch.
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Hazard and Ferdinand develop into the most recent star names to enrol within the Kings League, the competitors launched by former Barcelona defender Gerard Piqué in Spain firstly of 2023.
Along with the league in Spain — which counts on Sergio Aguëro and Iker Casillas as presidents — a second competitors, the Américas Kings League, lately began in Mexico that includes streamers, content material creators and footballers from throughout South America.
The Kings World Cup will deliver these two competitions collectively as a part of a 32-team match which can even function 12 wildcard groups from across the globe, with the winners incomes a $1 million money prize. It is going to be performed in Mexico between Might 26 and June 8.
Hazard, 33, introduced his shock early retirement from soccer final 12 months after 4 injury-hit seasons at Actual Madrid, who signed him from Chelsea for over €100m in 2019.
The 126-time Belgium worldwide turned down provides to extend his profession, however has agreed to participate within the Kings World Cup as a participant for Deptostra FC, a group ran by the Belgian streamer Céline Dept.
Ferdinand, in the meantime, will enter his personal group referred to as 5 FC and preside over it with Lynch, whose YouTube channel boasts over 11 million subscribers.
It was beforehand revealed that Neymar can even part-own one of many two Brazilian groups concerned, Furia FC, whereas Mario Götze, who scored the successful purpose for Germany within the 2014 World Cup, will oversee Youniors FC together with German TikTok sensation Younes Zarou.
Ibrahimović, who performed for a few of Europe’s greatest golf equipment throughout 24 years as knowledgeable, was unveiled because the president of the Kings World Cup at first of March.
The challenge is led by Piqué and appears to mix the very best of soccer with video game-style guidelines in 40-minute, seven-a-side matches. There are intervals when targets rely double and brief sections of the sport when a cube is rolled to find out what number of gamers needs to be faraway from both sides.
Groups are usually made up of newbie or semi-professional gamers, however the presidents of the groups even have the prospect to usher in ringers. Ronaldinho, Andrea Pirlo and Andriy Shevchenko have all featured prior to now, whereas Aguëro, pressured to retire prematurely attributable to a coronary heart drawback, usually performs for his group, Kunisports.
